Kato EMD SD80MAC

Scale:
N Scale


This installation uses the following decoder:


This installation is for the N Scale Kato EMD SD80MAC. It uses the TCS K2D4 Decoder - performed by TCS.

The picture above show the Kato EMD SD80MAC with the shell on.
First remove the shell by grasping it on either side (over the "Conrail" logo) and rock it back and forth until it slips off of the chassis.
Next slide and lift the original lighting board out of the chassis.
Apply Kapton tape to the area of the frame between the motor tabs so that the frame is isolated from the motor clips on the decoder.
Line up the tabs from the motor with the motor clips that are on the decoder.
This is a picture of the fully installed K2D4. This is an easy drop-in installation. You can now replace the shell and run your locomotive!

Important Soldering Tip

Please do not use any flux either liquid or paste on the mother board. Over time, the acidic properties of liquid or paste flux will begin eating away at the fiberglass PCB and will damage it. Use only Rosin-core solder or no-clean flux approved for electronics use.

TCS recommends the use of Kester "44" Sn63 Pb37, .015" diameter Rosin-core solder. Kester part number 24-6337-0007.

You can order this solder from the following retailers:
Digikey - PN:KE1110-ND
Techni-Tool - PN:488SO6775

Other solder tips

When stripping wire, only strip a tiny little bit of the insulation. Strip no more than a 1/32 of an inch. When the wire gets tinned with solder, the insulation will shrink back more. Try to not expose any more wire than half the length of the solder pad at most. In no case should solder or exposed wire wire ever be outside the boundary of the the solder pad you are attaching a wire to.
Click here for important information on properly Stripping and Tinning wire